Yieldable bearing for centrifugal machines



, M. LEITCH.

Patented Sept. 7, 1920.

UNITED STATES PATi-:NT'o1-"Flcla:I

MEREDITII LEITCH, OF POUGHKEEESIE, NEW YORK, AssIGNOR 'ro THE DELAVAL SEPARA'I'OR COMPANY, OE NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

YIELDAELE BEARING FOR CENTRIEUGAI.l MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 7, 1920. l

Application led January 8,1919.- Serial No. 270,188.

To all whom. t may concern:

Be it known that I, MEREDITH LEITCH, a citizen of theA United States, residing at Poughkeepsie, county of Dutchess, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Yieldable Bearings for Centrifugal Machines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to spring bearings particularly adapted for centrifugal m'achinery.

In such apparatus as centrifugal liquid separators and clarifiers, which necessarily revolve at high speed and in which it is impossible to always have the center of gravity exactly coincide with the geometrical center, the revolving spindle is providedwith a bearing held in the center of the frame by a spring. This spring permits slight movement of the bearing so that the spindle and bowl may revolve about the center of gravity. v

To give the best results the spring should have a slight resistance to small movements but a rapidly increasing resistance as the amplitude of the movement increases. With the ordinary springs employed for this purpose the resistance to movement is proportional to the movement.

The object of my invention is lto provide a spring bearing in which the rate of in.- crease of resistance to movement shall increase with the movement.

In an application led January 8, 1919, Serial No. 270,137, I have shown and described two yieldable bearings which attain the above objects. Each spring bearing comprises two members confining between them a coacting spring, the form of the coacting v members being such, and the spring being so shaped and anchored, that as the bearing is more and more displaced from its central position the free length of the spring, at the side toward which the bearing moves,

will be more and more reduced and thereby offer a more than proportionalresistance to further movement. In said application the novel features common to both spring bearings are claimed and certain features peculiar to one of the two spring bearings are also claimed.' The subject matter of the present vapplication involves the'novel is not confined to the specific embodiment.

illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Flgure l 1s a vertical sectional -view`ofa spindle, bearing support and spring coni# prlsing a preferred form of my invention, the spindle being shown in a central position'and the Spring being shown only in one plane. l

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1, with the spindle atone side of the center.

Fig. 3 is adeveloped view of the spring of Figs. 1 and 2.

The spindle a of a centrifugal bowl (not shown) is guided on a bearing b, laterally restrained by a spring c supported by a su port or abutment d. The outside of t e bearing is preferably spherical. The spring is of such length as to surround the bearing when ap lied thereto. It is of the type set y forth in atent No. 1,107,690, issued August 11th, 1914, to T. H. Miller, but differs from the specific construction of the patent in that the spring fingers are bent inward instead of outward andare curved on the are of a circle instead of irregularly. The spring lingers are attached to the support al which is of cylindrical shape and fits a cylindrical bore in a machine frame, making them particularly adapted for use to replace Miller springs in existing machines, of which there are many thousands in use.

With vthe bearing in the Central position, as shown in Fig. 1, the spring fingers, which are in effect so many different springs, touch the bearing b at only the points fw and leaving a relatively great length of free spring and permittingeasy movement of the bearing. When the bearing is moved to one side of the center, as shown in Fig. 2, the

lingers on that side bend and their points' of contact with the bearing approach its center, as at y and a, leaving relatively short a bearing guiding the spindle and present-- force of one of my s rings would be represented more clear y y the equatlon .F=w y with the exponent n greater than L Having now fully described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is- 1. A yielding bearing for centrifugal machines comprising a bearing member presenting a sphere-like surface, a surrounding member presenting an inner cylindrical supporting surface, and a spring confined between said members and so shaped and positioned thatv the resistance of the spring-to lateral movement of the bearing member away from its central position increases in a ratio exceeding the increase in the amplitude'of said movement.

2. A yielding bearing for centrifugal machines comprisin a bearing member presenting a sphereike surface, a surrounding member presenting an inner cyindrical supporting surface, and a spring confined between said members and so shaped and potioned that in the lateral movement ofthe bearing member the effective length of the spring is reduced at the side toward which the bearing member moves.

3. A yielding bearing for centrifugal machines comprising a bearing member presenting a sphere-like surface, a surrounding member presenting an inner cylindrical supporting surface, and a'spring confined between said members and so shaped and positioned that as the bearing member moves away from its central position the effective length of spring is reduced on the side toward which the bearing member moves and is increased on the opposite side.

4. In a yielding support for a rotatable spindle, the combination with the spindle, of

ing a sphere-like surface, a spring support presenting an inner cylindrical surface, and a restraining spring confined between the bearing and support, said spring being so shaped and positioned relative to the said bearing =and support that in the lateral movement of the spindle the free length of the spring is reduced at the side toward which the spindle moves.

5. A yielding bearing for a centrifugal machine comprising two members, one surrounding the other, and two springs each supported on one member and contacting with and slidable upon the other member, and means, including the relative shapes of the coacting parts of said members and springs, operative as the inner member moves toward one side of its central position, to effect a sliding movement of the at a rate exceeding said movement of the inner-member. v, 6. A yleldlng bearing for a centrifugal machine comprlsing a bearing member, a

vsurrounding supporting member, and a spring confined between them, said spring comprising two sets of spring fingers respectively anchored on the support opposite the upper and lower portions of the bearing member and respectively extending downwardly and upwardly toward, and slidable upon, the bearing member, and means, including, the relative shapes of the springs and bearing member, to reduce,- in the sliding movement of said springs, their effective length at that side of the central position toward which the bearing member moves.

7. In a yielding support for a rotatable spindle, the combination with the spindle, of a bearing guiding the spindle and presenting a sphere-like surface, a spring support presenting an inner cylindrical surface, and two sets of spring fingers anchored on the support, one set being curved downward and inward and contacting with the lower part of the bearing and the other set being curved upward and inward and contacting with the upper 'part of the bearing, so that, as the spindle moves away from its central position'the points of 4contact of the fingers on the side toward which the spindle moves vapproach the center of bearing thereby shortening the effective length of the fingers and causing them to offer relatively great resistance to further movement.

8. A yieldabley bearing for a centrifugal machine comprising a bearing having a sphere-like surface, a surrounding support having an inner cylindrical face, and a spring confined between the bearing and the support.

9. A yieldable bearing for a centrifugal machine comprising aA bearing having a sphere-like surface, a surrounding support having an inner cylindrical face, and a spring confined between the bearing and the support, the end of the spring adjacent the support extending flat thereagainst and the opposite free 'end of the spring contacting with the spherical-like surface of the bearmg. v

In testimony of which invention I have hereunto set my hand, at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., on this 31st da of December, 1918.

` EREDITH LEITCH. 

